Latest news with #SkilledWorkerVisa
Business News Wales
09-05-2025
- Business
- Business News Wales
Skills Gaps and Visa Changes - How Will Wales Respond?
In recent years, Wales has become a major player on the world stage. Known for its manufacturing, renewables, and tech output, this UK powerhouse is home to some key contributors to the global marketplace. However, with labour shortages already impacting crucial Welsh growth sectors — recent data shows that close to half of Welsh employers are reporting concerning skills gaps, especially in AI and green technologies. There is mounting concern that stricter immigration rules could further widen the gap, jeopardising the Welsh economy and its position as a trailblazer of industry. While labour costs, recruitment challenges and economic pressures have been highlighted as partially to blame for the growing skills gaps, it seems to me that crackdowns on immigration pathways for skilled migrants may also be hindering the closure of these gaps. What is the international landscape for graduates on skilled visas? International talent and graduates educated in Wales are critical to filling vital roles. However, the most popular visa pathway for international graduates, the Skilled Worker Visa, has become less accessible in April 2025 due to stricter employer sponsorship requirements, and increased fees. In 2024 there were also new restrictions on which visa-holders could bring dependants to the UK, and a reduction in the number of positions eligible for the Skilled Worker visa. The baseline minimum sponsorship salary for this visa has increased from £26,200 to £38,700, a threshold which sits far above Wales' average graduate salary of £22,420, making it incredibly difficult to secure employment. What is the impact on Welsh universities? While Chancellor Rachel Reeves has hinted at a future visa policy review to support industries like AI, tech, and science, it remains unclear whether specific countries like Wales, will receive tailored support. As The PIE notes, only around 8% of the near-20,000 international students recruited by IDP Education to the UK each year apply to Wales and only 1.3% enrol, meaning that as immigration rules tighten, this low number may shrink even further if not specifically addressed. Welsh universities are receiving £500,000 in funding to support the Global Wales programme – an initiative dedicated to promoting Wales as a global study destination and strengthening Welsh partnerships with international universities. Welsh institutions' international activity generates over £1.26bn for the economy annually. However, despite clear acknowledgement of the need for international connection and the urgent demand for tech professionals — with upwards of one million required by 2030 — Cardiff University has announced over 40 job cuts in its Computer Science and Mathematics departments, fields critical to the UK's economic growth plans. How are universities responding to immigration measures? In response to government efforts at reducing immigration, universities across the UK are seeking to offset the loss of incoming international talent by calling for ease of restrictions. We may well see a continuation of globally-focused efforts with universities establishing international hubs and committing to global relationships to sustain collaboration, and drive knowledge exchange in the face of reduced opportunities at home. Already, Cardiff University has over 90 Exchange Agreements with institutions in locations such as the USA, Canada, Central and South America, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. I have found it heartening to see the Welsh higher education community calling for a concerted effort to welcome international students, with Universities Wales publishing a report, Wales Beyond Borders, demanding a comprehensive strategy for international education and research for Wales. How will Wales and Welsh employers respond? In response to Brexit, the Welsh government led the way by establishing the Taith, a £65m mobility scheme working to enhance skills exchange in Wales. This positioned Wales as an openminded nation, generating significant global interest. Investment in key sectors like tech is also a priority for Welsh universities, with the Centre for Social Care and Artificial intelligence Learning (SCALE) in Cardiff receiving £1.8 million in catalytic funding from Health and Care Research Wales. Such investment will allow universities to prepare future graduates for new and evolving roles, contributing significantly to bridging skills gaps. Welsh universities will receive £18.5 million towards addressing the challenges facing the higher education sector, and a further £500,000 to support international recruitment and promotion. But it will take time to see the impact of these investments, and the clock is ticking. Will Welsh businesses follow universities by looking beyond borders, leveraging international talent, and building globally distributed teams to bridge the widening skills gap? I think it's definitely a possibility. Today, hiring overseas is something more and more employers are considering. With the rise of remote and hybrid working models, it's easier than ever to source, onboard and pay top tier talent abroad via solutions like Employer of Record. If the UK chooses to focus on immigration policies instead of critical skills gaps, I believe more employers may look abroad to establish operations, hire and pursue growth opportunities.
The National
25-04-2025
- Politics
- The National
Scottish Labour MPs hit out as man faces deportation
Falkirk MP Euan Stainbank said the Skilled Worker Visa scheme rules, introduced under Boris Johnson's premiership, were designed without 'fairness' or 'common sense' in mind. Stainbank said Farouq Ahmed, a graduate of the University of Stirling, has worked at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in a frontline role, helping to deliver child maintenance enforcement services. The Labour MP added that despite Ahmed's contribution to the public service, along with being an active member in his local community, and a record of following the rules, he now faces removal from the UK after his visa was refused due to not meeting the revised salary threshold. READ MORE: Labour 'block' vote on giving Scotland immigration powers 'Farouq's story is heartbreaking and infuriating. He has done everything right—he came here legally, studied hard, worked in public service, paid his taxes, and made a real difference to families across the UK while living and contributing to Falkirk,' Stainbank said. (Image: Euan Stainbank) 'To now be threatened with removal due to an arbitrary salary threshold is counterproductive. 'This is yet another example of the damaging legacy left behind by the Conservative Government's panicked reaction to their broken immigration system. These rules weren't designed with fairness or common sense in mind—they were driven by political expediency and a Tory Government who knew their policies were failing.' Ahmed is one of dozens of local DWP workers being represented by the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, which wrote to Prime Minister Keir Starmer in April demanding that the scheme's rules be addressed urgently. Stainbank added: 'Farouq and those like him are not a statistic—he's a hardworking civil servant who has worked tirelessly for children to receive the support they're due. He contributes to the system every day, and it is frankly disgraceful that the system is now turning its back on him.' Alloa and Grangemouth MP Brian Leishman also met with representatives from the PCS union and heard directly from those affected by the changes to the scheme. (Image: Brian Leishman MP) He said it is 'baffling' that government rules are punishing people like Ahmed who work for DWP because their wages are 'lagging far behind' other departments. 'The Skilled Worker Visa sponsorship salary thresholds and criteria, introduced by the previous Tory government, should be changed to allow hard-working DWP staff to stay,' Leishman said. 'I have previously met with PCS officials as well as constituents of my own who are worried about their families' future in Alloa and Grangemouth – despite doing everything right. 'DWP workers such as Farouq have done so much to contribute positively to our society, yet they are now being denied the opportunity to remain working simply because their pay is lagging far behind other government departments. 'With the DWP facing a staffing shortage, it is baffling to see that the government's own rules will see hundreds of experienced staff dismissed.' He added: 'Farouq and others have sought to contribute meaningfully to our society, we should be grateful that they chose the UK to study, live and work. 'I stand firmly with the affected workers. The DWP and Home Office must do more to resolve the issue before families are removed from the UK.'
Forbes
16-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
U.K. Visa Fees Leaving Science And Other Sectors Struggling For Talent
Scientists in a lab. The visa fees the U.K. government charges to foreign workers, and the British companies that want to hire them, have steadily increased in recent years, as successive governments try to reduce the amount of people immigrating to the country. This is having serious consequences for science and research, as well as many other sectors, amid historic labor shortfalls across the British economy. According to Reuters, the high and increasing cost of visas - which includes the visa itself as well as other charges such as paying into the country's national health service as well as fees for any accompanying family members - could be deterring potential foreign workers, particularly scientists and engineers, from looking to fill vacancies in those sectors in the U.K. It couldn't come at a worse time. The U.K. is already struggling to plug massive holes in its labor market, across various sectors. On top of the visa fees, complicated and changing employment regulations in the country's relatively recently-introduced Skilled Worker Visa route are 'hampering' businesses trying to hire the talent they need. At the same time, critical sectors such as care work are also seeing massive shortages, as people are put off from the U.K. and seek work elsewhere, and amid a lack of domestic workers to fill the gaps. The current U.K. government under the Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer has made economic growth in the U.K. its main priority, and has said on several occasions it will review the visa system to try and make things easier. At the same time, however, the government is also under pressure to keep immigration numbers down. Parties and commentators to the right of British politics have criticized the government over its handling of a perceived 'crisis' of immigration in the country and there is continued focus on the regular 'net migration' figures which show just how many people are coming. Nonetheless, the need for foreign workers in the U.K. is clear, as it is across many countries in Western Europe. In light of this, Julia King, a former member of the U.K.'s House of Lords, told Reuters the country's current visa fee regime is an "act of national self-harm." Many other commentators have for years argued that the U.K. cannot achieve its growth ambitions without recruiting potentially hundreds of thousands of foreign workers. As it stands, however, the current recruitment and visa system is preventing many U.K. businesses getting the workers they need. "Whatever your views on the politics of immigration, the fact is that we don't have enough skilled workers in the U.K. to grow our economy,' wrote employment lawyer David Winnie in a recent op-ed. 'Unless the shortcomings of the current system are addressed – and hopefully they will be in future updates – many businesses could be hindered from reaching their full potential.' The government told Reuters that they are conducting a review into the system and will issue a policy paper to "to restore order to our broken immigration system" while also trying to grow the domestic workforce, thereby reducing the need for foreign workers.
Forbes
28-03-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Visa System Hampering Businesses Seeking Workers, Says U.K. Lawyer
The financial district of London. (Getty Creative) According to a partner at one of the U.K.'s leading law firms, the country's immigration system is 'holding businesses back' in their attempts to recruit the foreign workers they need. The commentary highlights current tensions in the U.K., between the need for more foreign talent to fill critical skills shortages on the one hand, and the political pressure on the government to limit immigration numbers on the other. Writing for 'People Management,' the HR news site run by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, David Winnie, a partner at law firm Gilson Gray, outlines the ways the U.K.'s current system for skilled labor immigration is getting in the way of businesses trying to recruit. These issues broadly emanate from the way the Skilled Worker Visa (SWV) system works. The SWV was established to manage skilled labor immigration in the wake of the U.K.'s exit from the European Union, after which the country stopped benefitting from the free movement of workers from around Europe. The system sets minimum salary thresholds for potential foreign workers in various sectors, with particular exceptions and carve-outs for jobs in sectors deemed critical. The system in theory ensures minimum standards while also allowing businesses to recruit the workers they need, thereby supporting Britain's economic growth. In practice, however, businesses and immigration advisers have found the system often difficult to navigate, preventing businesses from recruiting. 'While (the scheme) sounds reasonable and it was set up with the right intentions,' writes Winnie, 'the system is highly complex and convoluted.' Where the scheme gets difficult, says Winnie, is the finer details of calculating whether a worker's salary meets those minimum standards, taking into account hours worked, the particular sector and other benefits included in the employment package. Compounding matters, he says, is a series of recently-introduced regulations from the Home Office (the U.K. ministry responsible for immigration), which have proven difficult to keep up with. Getting all the details right is very important, as failure to properly follow the rules - even inadvertently - could mean employers are fined or even stripped of their ability to hire more foreign workers. Winnie's post highlights a point of tension in the U.K., where immigration is a very sensitive political issue. There is enormous pressure on the government to reduce the overall amount of immigrants coming to the country. The government then has a fine line to tread between making sure the country's businesses and economy overall are getting the workers they need, while at the same time trying to head off the political damage they may receive by being seen as letting in 'too many' people. As it stands, it is clear the U.K. still does not have nearly enough workers as it needs, with massive shortages long reported across many key sectors. David Winnie's expert commentary outlines how the inefficiencies in the existing system are only exacerbating that problem. 'Whatever your views on the politics of immigration, the fact is that we don't have enough skilled workers in the U.K. to grow our economy,' he concludes. 'Unless the shortcomings of the current system are addressed – and hopefully they will be in future updates – many businesses could be hindered from reaching their full potential.'
